Who We Are

School districts, communities, businesses and nonprofits working in partnership for children in our region

What is Learn4Life?
We are a collaborative effort made up of people and organizations committed to our region. We have a vested interest in making sure all students succeed, because we know metro Atlanta’s long-term vitality and prosperity depends on our commitment to educating our young people and preparing the next generation of leaders and citizens. Working together, we leverage our skills and resources to address specific outcomes identified through data analysis. Learn more about our work.

Our Vision 
To ensure that every child in our region becomes a thriving citizen who achieves success in school, career and life, while contributing to our community.

Our Mission
• To engage education, business and community partners, along with families and students, in a regional cradle-to-career initiative
• To align educational efforts and resources, ensuring success for every child
• To collect and analyze data so we can measure our progress and determine where we should focus our resources

Key Elements

Common Agenda: A regional approach where all partners share a common vision for change

Shared Measurement: All partners agree on how success is measured, and we share these data and analyse

Reinforcing Activity: All partners coordinate individual and joint actions to support our common agenda

Continuous Communication: All partners communicate openly and honestly to build trust, motivation and shared accountability

Support: All our partners commit both financially and personally to this joint approach

How Will Learn4Life Measure Success?

In all activities, we use data as a flashlight, not as a hammer. We want to lift up successful practices throughout the region using an evidence-based approach. By focusing on six key indicators, we will measure our progress and share efforts that have proven to be uncommonly successful.

  • We collect and analyze data to shape our work;
  • Share accountability for results;
  • Highlight investments that positively influence outcomes for every child; and
  • Focus resources on what works to help meet our shared goals.

School District Partners

Our School System Partners

Our Supporters

Our supporters generously provide the resources we need to implement effective strategies on a large scale.

AT&T Georgia

Atlanta Regional Commission*

BlackRock

Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta*

Delta Air Lines, Inc.

Dobbs Foundation

Enterprise Holdings Foundation

Gas South

Genuine Parts

Georgia Power

Graphic Packaging International, Inc

Greene-Sawtell Foundation

Home Depot Foundation

The Kelin Family Foundation

The Kendeda Fund

Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce*

Morehouse School of Medicine

Sartain Lanier Family Foundation

Southern Education Foundation

State Farm Mutual Insurance Company

SunTrust Foundation

TEGNA Foundation

The Tull Charitable Foundation

United Way of Greater Atlanta*

WestRock

The Zeist Foundation

*Indicates Executive Committee members. The Executive Committee is made up of established nonprofit organizations with a shared commitment to strengthening our region.

Leadership

The Leadership Council is a diverse group of senior executives who guide our work and bring together stakeholders throughout
the region to partner with us and make a collective, positive impact on education in our region.

Dr. Kenneth Zeff, Executive Director, Learn4Life

Community
 Mindy Binderman, Executive Director, GEEARS

Dr. Steve Dolinger, President, Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education

Milton Little, President and CEO, United Way of Greater Atlanta

Higher education

Dr. Glen Cannon, President, Gwinnett Technical College

Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, President Emerita, Spelman College

Dr. Tim Hynes, President, Clayton State University

Dr. Timothy Renick, Executive Director, National Institute for Student Success, Georgia State University

Dr. Claire Sterk, President, Emory University

Dr. David A. Thomas, President, Morehouse College

Dr. Pamela Whitten, President, Kennesaw State University

Business
 Ann Cramer, Senior Consultant*, Coxe Curry & Associates

Kevin Greiner, President and CEO, Gas South

Jenna Kelly, North Georgia Regional President, Truist

Anne Kaiser, Vice President, Community and Economic Development, Georgia Power

Katie Kirkpatrick, President and CEO*, Metro Atlanta Chamber

Keith Parker, President and CEO, Goodwill of North Georgia

Sylvia Russell, Former President†, AT&T Georgia

David Scheible, Former President and CEO†,
Graphic Packaging International

Peter Williams, Director of Business Strategy, BlackRock

Pre-K-12 education
 Dr. Morcease J. Beasley, Superintendent, Clayton County Public Schools

Dr. David Dude, Superintendent, City Schools of Decatur

Dr. Lisa Herring, Superintendent, Atlanta Public Schools

Dr. Mike Looney, Superintendent, Fulton County Schools

Chris Ragsdale, Superintendent, Cobb County School District

Dr. Grant Rivera, Superintendent, Marietta City Schools

Cheryl Watson-Harris, Superintendent, DeKalb County School District

Alvin Wilbanks, CEO and Superintendent, Gwinnett County Schools

Philanthropic

Frank Fernandez, President*, The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

Dena Kimball, Executive Director, The Kendeda Fund

Teresa Rivero, Senior Program Officer, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Dr. David D. Weitnauer, President, R. Howard Dobbs, Jr. Foundation

Government
Doug Hooker, Executive Director*, Atlanta Regional Commission

Dennis Lockhart, Former President and CEO†, Federal Reserve Bank of America

*Indicates Executive Committee members. The Executive Committee is made up of established nonprofit organizations with a shared commitment to strengthening our region.

†Indicates Executive Champions. Executive Champions are senior members of the metro Atlanta business community who bring their leadership and influence to support the Learn4Life vision.

Core Team
Cross functional leaders who support implementation and communication across sectors to eliminate silos and deliver results.

Brad Bryant, REACH Georgia

Dr. Leslie Bussey, Georgia Leadership Institute for School Improvement

Tim Cairl, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce

Mike Carnathan, Atlanta Regional Commission

Dr. Shafiqua Little, Learn4Life

Ellyn Peterson Cochran, United Way of Greater Atlanta

Errika Moore, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

Lita Pardi, Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta

Rebecca Parshall, Learn4Life

Tommy Pearce, Neighborhood Nexus

Dr. Dana Rickman, Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education (GPEE)